possible to become prolific?

[wrtaway]

Like everyone else here, I have to squeeze my writing into a busy life. Unfortunately, I am a slooooow writer. I tend to be a "one-drafter", meaning that I edit as I go and don't need to do much revising once I'm done. Still, though, I really need to pick up the pace in order to meet some upcoming deadlines.

Do you think that it is possible to become a faster writer (while maintaining the quality, of course)? Or, are some people just born to be prolific, and others, like myself, have to plod along at whatever pace inspiration strikes?

I'd love to hear suggestions from anyone who has managed to learn to write faster.

[scarletpeaches]

Yes.

Look at typing itself. Now, at top speed, I can do around 75 wpm without trying. It used to be...well, a lot fewer.

You can train yourself to do anything faster. Typing's easy. You'll never learn to type as fast as you can think, so the ideas will always be there waiting to be written.

I despise the idea that some people are plodders and others are magically touched by the finger of God to command the muse to inspire them.

There's no such thing as a muse, or writer's block, or anything like that. There are just writers who write, and others who angst about writing.

[Mumut]

I have the worst of both worlds. I'm a one-drafter but I do a lot of re-reading and editing after the work has been completed. I can't see any cure for it either. I can see improvements after each update. Why didn't I see that in the first re-read? I don't know. I'm just a slow editor.

[JimmyB27]

Yes.

Look at typing itself. Now, at top speed, I can do around 75 wpm without trying. It used to be...well, a lot fewer.

You can train yourself to do anything faster. Typing's easy. You'll never learn to type as fast as you can think, so the ideas will always be there waiting to be written.

I despise the idea that some people are plodders and others are magically touched by the finger of God to command the muse to inspire them.

There's no such thing as a muse, or writer's block, or anything like that. There are just writers who write, and others who angst about writing.
Sure, your way is the only way. Gimme a break.
I don't think there's any such thing as a muse, that much I agree with. But I think writer's block exists, depending on your definition.
In On Writing, Stephen King suggests there's no such thing as writer's block, and then goes on to talk about the fact that being stuck a lot is possible. I don't get the difference. For me, being stuck *is* writer's block. And I get stuck a lot, which makes me something of a plodder.
Tried the organic thing, can't do it. I have to work out the story beforehand, and it often takes a lot of time. Once I have something to work with, I can knock out a few thousand words in next to no time, but without a framework, I'm high and dry.
Still, I'm working on it, and I think I'm becoming better at building the framework. Bit by bit. So, yeah, I'd say you can improve. Just like any other skill.

[Wayne K]

I don't think writers block exists.

[JimmyB27]

I don't think writers block exists.
Writer's block doesn't think you exist.

[scarletpeaches]

Sure, your way is the only way. Gimme a break.

Now where did I say that? Must I preface every one of my posts with "This is what works for me, in case anyone else gets offended?"

As if I had to explain it again...talking about muses, inspiration, writer's block, etc...that takes the responsibility for writing out of the hands of the writer and places it firmly with something outside them - God, fate, the universe, whatever.

I'm big on personal responsibility. I refuse to believe writer's block exists and I refuse to believe there's anything I can't do if I put my mind to it.

I don't type fast because I'm blessed by God. I type fast because I trained myself to do just that.

[thethinker42]

As if I had to explain it again...talking about muses, inspiration, writer's block, etc...that takes the responsibility for writing out of the hands of the writer and places it firmly with something outside them - God, fate, the universe, whatever.

QFT.

People claim writer's block, whatever, keeps them from writing. In reality, the reason something isn't written is because you haven't written it. End of story. Call it whatever you want, but that's what it boils down to.

That's not to say that outside influences *don't* impact productivity, but "writer's block", in the abstract "I simply can't write...because I can't" sense? No, I don't think it exists.

[Wayne K]

Writer's block doesn't think you exist.
Maybe it doesn't know I exist, it's never come to call.

[JimmyB27]

So, you guys *never* get stuck? *Greeneyes*

[Wayne K]

If I want to write but can't, it's usually because there's work involved that I don't want to do, or I really don't anything to say that day. If your creativity is blocked it's not some mysterious visitor that only touches writers. It's the same RL crap that distracts normal people in their daily life.

[Wayne K]

It's why we drink ourselves dead.

[JJ Cooper]

Some people are happy enough just 'plodding' along.

My suggestion for writing faster would be just to keep writing. You may be able to improve the quality and quantity over time.

Some people are prolific. Most are inspired by something. Just keep at it and stay determined.

JJ

[JimmyB27]

If I want to write but can't, it's usually because there's work involved that I don't want to do, or I really don't anything to say that day. If your creativity is blocked it's not some mysterious visitor that only touches writers. It's the same RL crap that distracts normal people in their daily life.
I'm not suggesting that it is some mysterious visitor. Think of something like doing a crossword, or working out a maths puzzle or whatever. It's perfectly possible to become stuck on something like that and not know how to solve it. Eventually you probably will work it out, but it may take time. When that happens with my writing, ie plot problems etc, I call it writer's block.

[scarletpeaches]

Well look, in my case - the only time I'm physically unable to write is when I have a migraine. Like last night, I lost the use of one arm. Yeah, my writing hand. Still, I was too busy trying not to die, to worry about my WIP.

Do I ever think, "This is shit!" or "How can I ever finish this?" or "Why would anyone want to publish this?" Oh god yes, all the time.

But the only way out is through. You have to make yourself finish it, through health problems, family crises, trouble at work, home dilemmas...you just have to write it.

I'm not saying it's easy. Jeez, if I tried writing with a migraine, I'd...well I'm not sure I'd cope. So no, writing through problems isn't easy.

But it is simple. It's an elegant solution, and the only one that works. No-one else can write the book for you, and though my way of speaking might seem harsh, the only person who can finish JimmyB27's book is JimmyB27. Same for me, Wayne, tt42...

Incidentally, I know she doesn't want to say anything because it'll seem like bragging, but tt42 has written nine books in eight months. Hey, if Nora Roberts can do it...;) Seriously, though - it gets on my tits when people say, "Ah, that's just you though," as if she's special and - sorry, Lori! - she's not.

She's had her own set of circumstances to deal with involving emigrating, jet lag, family shit which is not my business to discuss here...but she still knows the only person who can write Lori's books is Lori. So she does.

Plus, she has me on MSN chewing her ass if she doesn't get on with it.

But still...it's about using every possible pocket of time, and just...making yourself do it. And giving yourself permission to write crap, if necessary. There's nothing that can't be corrected on the edits. Absolutely nothing.

[Wayne K]

I didn't mean that you do, but man some people go overboard with it.

[scarletpeaches]

I'm not suggesting that it is some mysterious visitor. Think of something like doing a crossword, or working out a maths puzzle or whatever. It's perfectly possible to become stuck on something like that and not know how to solve it. Eventually you probably will work it out, but it may take time. When that happens with my writing, ie plot problems etc, I call it writer's block.

I had something similar years back. A friend was trying to explain something about the Bible (bear with me, this is relevant) and I just wasn't getting it. So I said, "Can we move on? If I try to force myself to understand it, I won't."

So we did. Hours later I was doing the dishes. A completely unrelated activity, and the penny dropped. My brain had a rest from the 'complicated' thing and was more or less asleep, and able to assimilate the information my friend had given me earlier.

But you might think that's related to writer's block, and proves that everyone gets stuck sometimes. Not so. This was a 'factual' thing with names, dates, etc involved. I just had to get it straight in my own head.

Writing being creative, I just think, "Blocked? Pfft. Write your way out of it. Create a way out. We're writers; that's what we do."

In a sense, as long as we don't break our own canon, we get to play God. We control everything; the writing doesn't control us.

[thethinker42]

So, you guys *never* get stuck? *Greeneyes*

I never said I don't get stuck. I never said it was all easy. Nothing of the sort.

In fact, today I'm having a difficult day, whereas yesterday I wrote 7,500 words like it was nothing. Good days, bad days. It happens.

What you *don't* hear me saying is "Oh, I have writer's block", as if something outside of myself (beyond my control, in need of some sort of "cure") is preventing me from writing. Writer's block puts the "blame" (for lack of a better word) on something/someone other than the writer.

I know full well that the reason I'm not writing as much today is because my head isn't in the game. I'm being lazy, and I know it. Am I giving myself a pass today? Yes. Will I give myself a pass tomorrow? Absolutely not. I don't care how I feel tomorrow, I *WILL* reach my 5,000 word goal. Period.

IMHO, writer's block is a "get out of jail free" card. "I'm not writing today, but it's okay, it's not my fault, it's writer's block." Sort of like, "I haven't written my book because the muse hasn't spoken to me yet."

Everyone has good and bad days - Lord knows I'm not having a great one today - but the difference lies in where we place the responsibility. "I have writer's block" takes the responsibility off of the writer's shoulders.

[thethinker42]

I'm not suggesting that it is some mysterious visitor. Think of something like doing a crossword, or working out a maths puzzle or whatever. It's perfectly possible to become stuck on something like that and not know how to solve it. Eventually you probably will work it out, but it may take time. When that happens with my writing, ie plot problems etc, I call it writer's block.

Therein lies the difference between you and me. When I get stuck with a plot problem, etc., that isn't writer's block....a speed bump? An obstacle? Sure. Writer's block implies, to me, the (perceived) inability to write.

When I hit those obstacles, I work on something else (different piece of the same WIP) and come back to it later. When there is absolutely no way around it, has to be addressed right now...then I slog through it. It won't leave me alone until it's solved, so I might as well...or I'm going to end up facing it the next day with a sleepless night on top of it.

[Bubastes]

I think learning to write faster is quite do-able with practice. And don't let the quantity/quality false dichotomy stop you from trying. Last night, I reviewed some short stories I wrote over the past few months, and I found NO relationship between the quality and the writing speed. In fact, the best story in the group was a 6K-word story written, revised, and submitted in 2 days, which is much faster than my typical pace. I guess I made up my mind that I would reach a particular goal and just did it, no excuses. Oh, and having a deadline, either outside or self-imposed, helps too.

[Wayne K]

It does call the question: Why aren't you all writing then?

I'm just saying...

[thethinker42]

I think learning to write faster is quite do-able with practice. And don't let the quantity/quality false dichotomy stop you from trying. Last night, I reviewed some short stories I wrote over the past few months, and I found NO relationship between the quality and the writing speed. In fact, the best story in the group was a 6K-word story written, revised, and submitted in 2 days, which is much faster than my typical pace. I guess I made up my mind that I would reach a particular goal and just did it, no excuses. Oh, and having a deadline, either outside or self-imposed, helps too.

AMEN. Speed =/= Quality

One of my books took ten years, 3 full drafts, countless notes, and God only knows how many hours...and it still sucks.

Another took a few days of outlining, 5 days of writing, 2 weeks of revising, and was contracted less than a month after I started writing it.

You write at whatever speed it takes you to write the story the way it needs to be told. There's no shame in writing fast, slow, or somewhere in between.

[thethinker42]

It does call the question: Why aren't you all writing then?

I'm just saying...

Because I bloody well don't feel like it right now. ;)

[Susan Breen]

I'm a lot faster than I was ten years ago and I think it's because I've become more confident. I have a strong sense of how I want the arc of a story to go. I've learned the questions I need to ask my characters, and so on. I don't imagine I'll get much faster because I think a certain amount of time is necessary, but I've become more efficient.

[wrtaway]

Interesting discussion. As the OP, let me clarify a bit, though. I am not talking about writer's block. I'm just talking about the sentences emerging slowly but steadily. It seems that I need to think each one through very, very carefully -- words just don't seem to fly onto the screen the way some people manage.

I was being a bit glib when I mentioned "muse", too. I take full ownership of my ideas and my ability to put them on paper. I just want the ideas to flow a little faster.

[scarletpeaches]

I realise we got a bit off-topic, but I believe that yes, with practise, you can learn to type faster, that is, not just banging away at the keys, but getting the ideas out.

If you train yourself to sit in the chair at a certain time every day, the words will come. Actually, have you read Dorothea Brande's Becoming a Writer?

[thethinker42]

If you train yourself to sit in the chair at a certain time every day, the words will come.

QFT again.

The more you do it, the faster you'll get until you find "your speed".

[Bubastes]

If you train yourself to sit in the chair at a certain time every day, the words will come.

I'll add to this: if you're like me and can't always manage setting aside a particular time every day to write, then train yourself to write anytime, anywhere, in any slivers of time (I know SP likes that phrase) you can find. I have a notebook or my Alphasmart Neo with me at all times, making it easy for me to dash off a paragraph or two if I find a free 5-10 minutes (waiting in line at the store, being on hold on the phone, waiting for my pasta water to boil, etc.). When I know I don't have all of the time in the world to get my words written, that extra edge of panic juices my brain and helps me write faster.

[Wayne K]

I say quit your job, become a drunk and write whenever the damned well hell you want.

I'm a bad person to ask.

[scarletpeaches]

QFT again.

The more you do it, the faster you'll get until you find "your speed".

That throws up the question; I wonder if people have a more comfortable 'default'? Like, for me, the first thousand words a day is like pulling teeth, but after that, the words flow. If I get 5k done, I'm happy.

I'll add to this: if you're like me and can't always manage setting aside a particular time every day to write, then train yourself to write anytime, anywhere, in any slivers of time (I know SP likes that phrase) you can find. I have a notebook or my Alphasmart Neo with me at all times, making it easy for me to dash off a paragraph or two if I find a free 5-10 minutes (waiting in line at the store, being on hold on the phone, waiting for my pasta water to boil, etc.). When I know I don't have all of the time in the world to get my words written, that extra edge of panic juices my brain and helps me write faster.

Slivers or pockets, either work for me!

And I love my Neo long time.

I say quit your job, become a drunk and write whenever the damned well hell you want.

I'm a bad person to ask.

Sounds like a plan to me!

*opens the Smirnoff*

[thethinker42]

That throws up the question; I wonder if people have a more comfortable 'default'? Like, for me, the first thousand words a day is like pulling teeth, but after that, the words flow. If I get 5k done, I'm happy.

You may be right. My first thousand or so is usually agony, after that it's pretty smooth sailing. If I'm having a "normal" day, I hit the wall around 5,000...on a good day, I'll hit it around 10,000. But whether it's a 5K or 10K day, that first 1K is always a bitch.

I think everyone just has to find their own sweet spot. Whatever gets the words on the page in the proper order to tell their story.

[ccv707]

In terms of knowing how to type, simply practice and make yourself a better typist. When I was younger, I crawled along at about twenty-thirty words a minute. Now I can cruise around 100 wpm.

When it comes to more psychological things, it's a matter of grasping onto that feeling in your gut that tends to come and go that drives your fingers to transcribe your thoughts. You simply have to want it--if you're just attracted to the idea of being a writer for the sake of it, you probably won't get very far. You have to feel compelled to write. Nothing less will suffice. If you are truly compelled, the words will come sooner or later.

[Eric San Juan]

Do you think that it is possible to become a faster writer (while maintaining the quality, of course)?
Yes.

Some discipline, a routine you stick to, good work habits, focus, self-imposed deadlines that you meet. All of these things. when done together, can and will help someone to become a faster, more prolific writer without sacrificing the quality of their work (and in fact, their work is likely to get better).

THIS is the place in which you write.

THIS is the time during which you write.

At that time you go to that place and you WRITE.

It will not happen immediately, but if you stick with it for even just a few weeks it will become second nature and you will be more prolific and your work will improve. You will write faster. Your work will be more consistent. It will no longer be a struggle.

[ChristineR]

It's a skill, it is learned and practiced like any other skill.

I don't think the typing is the limiting factor. Say you type 60 words a minute, and you consider "prolific" to be 5000 words per day. Keep in mind that 5000 words per day equals a medium sized novel in 20 days, or a month if you work only weekdays. That's far faster than most "prolific" novelists write. That works out to be 83 minutes of typing, which obviously isn't much. The rest of your time is spent rewriting, plotting, and such.

[Polenth]

Do you think that it is possible to become a faster writer (while maintaining the quality, of course)? Or, are some people just born to be prolific, and others, like myself, have to plod along at whatever pace inspiration strikes?

I'd love to hear suggestions from anyone who has managed to learn to write faster.

I write faster now. I'm writing roughly twice as much as I was last year (and before that I wasn't writing). Most of the speed increase happened automatically through practise. I didn't do anything special.

I don't sit down at a set time or anything like that, as others are suggesting here. I do set monthly goals though, which increase as I get comfortable with meeting the previous goal.

[Izz]

Do you think that it is possible to become a faster writer (while maintaining the quality, of course)?
Yep, you sure can (as others have already mentioned).

My quantity has improved immensely over the last eighteen months (as has my quality), and one of the reasons has to do with one of the next things you said...
I'm just talking about the sentences emerging slowly but steadily. It seems that I need to think each one through very, very carefully -- words just don't seem to fly onto the screen the way some people manage.
I used to worry terribly about sentence quality. Sometimes I'd rewrite a sentence eight, nine, ten times before i moved on. Then i realized that once i finished a draft i'd usually end up rewriting those troublesome sentences again anyway. I think at times we can put too much pressure on ourselves to write perfect first-draft, and that pressure doesn't actually lend itself to better quality. Interestingly, since i've relaxed into allowing myself to move on if something doesn't feel right i've found my overall quality on first-drafts has improved a whole lot.

Now, i'm not gonna preach at you and say you should be doing this or that or the other thing, and that if you can't churn out words you're somehow broken, but for me relaxing myself mentally was a big deal.

[IceCreamEmpress]

Interesting discussion. As the OP, let me clarify a bit, though. I am not talking about writer's block. I'm just talking about the sentences emerging slowly but steadily. It seems that I need to think each one through very, very carefully -- words just don't seem to fly onto the screen the way some people manage.

Maybe picking one project and trying it a different way--writing whatever comes into your head so you can edit later--might help. I tend to be a pre-editor myself, and I find that it's useful to do that every now and then. Natalie Goldberg's Writing Down the Bones has some good suggestions about this.

[The Lonely One]

Most of us can probably recall a time in our schooling when a few pages daunted us.

Look at us now.

You can become better, faster, less intimidated or whatever you choose with practice.

[Libbie]

Now where did I say that? Must I preface every one of my posts with "This is what works for me, in case anyone else gets offended?"

As if I had to explain it again...talking about muses, inspiration, writer's block, etc...that takes the responsibility for writing out of the hands of the writer and places it firmly with something outside them - God, fate, the universe, whatever.

I'm big on personal responsibility. I refuse to believe writer's block exists and I refuse to believe there's anything I can't do if I put my mind to it.

I don't type fast because I'm blessed by God. I type fast because I trained myself to do just that.

Right on, Scarletpeaches. You tell 'em.

In case you haven't guessed, I'm with Scarlet on this one. You can learn to type like the wind; that does help. I type very fast and average around 3000 words in a typical hour-and-a-half writing session. If I know what I want to write. Obviously a lot of sitting and thinking is involved in writing, as you try to work through the problems that come up while you work on a scene or plot.

As for becoming prolific, what's helped me is scheduling time to write. Specific time that seldom changes. While I was on my internship, it was as soon as I got home from work and scrubbed the smell of baitfish off of me. I wrote for about an hour and a half after my shower. That was my routine. Off my internship, I wrote in the morning hours, usually going to Starbucks to do it so I was in a different environment. I find that getting into a different place with some good white noise helps me to focus. I'm starting a new job tomorrow so I'm not yet sure what will work, but you can bet I'll be scheduling some regular writing time as soon as I've got the new routine figured out. I won't be handling any baitfish this time around, so that helps.

If you want to be as prolific as TheThinker42, become unemployed in a foreign country. That seemed to work for her. ;)

Sure, you can get annoying pauses in your writing and you can choose to call them "writer's block" if you want to. The only way to get through them is to write through them. Not everything you write will be golden, so it doesn't really matter if you write crap through your block. You can always go back later and change it to non-crap. Or to golden crap; whatever.

And yeah, there are people who are writers because they write, and there are people who angst about writing. They don't write much. I'm not sure I'd call most of them writers.

[wannawrite]

Wow. I am amazed by tt42. I'm a pretty prolific writer, but I don't touch that productivity, not even on a good day. My brain would be oatmeal, and I would be walking into walls by the end of it! WOW!
Way to go.

[scarletpeaches]

Her brain is made of oatmeal. She hires a stable of eleventy billion ghost-writers, all chained in her basement and she takes credit for what they do.

[Libbie]

Interesting discussion. As the OP, let me clarify a bit, though. I am not talking about writer's block. I'm just talking about the sentences emerging slowly but steadily. It seems that I need to think each one through very, very carefully -- words just don't seem to fly onto the screen the way some people manage.


Maybe you should try some writing exercises. Try writing free-flow, just whatever little fragment of a story comes into your head, and make your goal to write as many coherent sentences as you can in five minutes (or two, or one.) The more you practice any skill--including forming nice sentences--the more adept and efficient you will become. :)

[Libbie]

Wow. I am amazed by tt42. I'm a pretty prolific writer, but I don't touch that productivity, not even on a good day. My brain would be oatmeal, and I would be walking into walls by the end of it! WOW!
Way to go.

And the scary thing is, her finished manuscripts are really good. I've known tt42 since we were both in our late teens and I've been beta-reading her mss ever since then. I've seen her progression. It's scary (in a good way.) The woman is en fuego.

[wannawrite]

Her brain is made of oatmeal. She hires a stable of eleventy billion ghost-writers, all chained in her basement and she takes credit for what they do.

Ah-ha. So. That's the secret, then. I just KNEW that there was a secret to all this! See you later, guys. I'm outta here!

*off to go purchase for herself some ghostie writers.*

[ClaudiaGray]

I think everyone can learn to write faster. I don't know whether everybody can become fast enough be prolific. But it's worth finding out. :)

[The Lonely One]

tt42 is a wise one.

I heard somewhere (I'll have to look it up--I think it's in Dufresne's book...) that you can write for surprisingly long tracks of time after you make it past your first wind.

Perhaps this is what tt is experiencing?

[ChristineR]

By the way, have we defined prolific yet? Maybe you're not as slow as you think you are. And if you don't revise after the first draft, that counts also.

[Sarashay]

Ever read Camus' The Plague? There's a character in there who keeps writing and rewriting the first sentence of his novel to reach some kind of perfection and never gets any further than that. I suspect that's something of a cautionary tale for writerly types.

NaNoWriMo taught me the fine art of Just Plowing Ahead Even If It Sucks. Which means I now have a manuscript to revise instead of a neat idea for a novel. And, as others have pointed out, the more you write, the easier it gets. Get all your mistakes out in the open so you can fix them instead of keeping them bottled up inside.

[wrtaway]

For me, 1000 words a day would be a BIG day. Someone here earlier mentioned 5000 - 7500 words a day? Wow - never in my wildest dreams. I wish! A typical writing session would be 500 words.

[NicoleMD]

Writing speed might also vary by project. Some stories can demand more mental resources than others, and thus get put on the page more slowly. Sometimes you might have to stop to chew on tough plot points or beat down the personal demons lurking over your shoulder.

For my current WIP I'm usually good with 500-1000 words a day. On other projects it's been closer to 1500-3000 words daily. I guess whenever I move on to my next project, I'll see if it was the project slowing me down, or just me slowing myself down.

Nicole

[thethinker42]

I heard somewhere (I'll have to look it up--I think it's in Dufresne's book...) that you can write for surprisingly long tracks of time after you make it past your first wind.

Perhaps this is what tt is experiencing?

There's something to be said for that. When I find my second wind, that's usually when I'm most productive. I'll slog through 1-2K words, take a break, then come back and write three or four times that much without blinking. It's easy to give up once you hit that first wall, but I suspect a lot of writers might find that they DO get a second wind if they come back after a break.

Someone else mentioned NaNoWriMo, and to be honest, that's what got me rolling: I did NaNo this past November, learned to FORCE myself to write as much as possible as often as possible. Once I got into that groove, I didn't want to let it go, so I moved into another project as soon as my NaNo novel was done...when that one was done, moved to another. I've been riding that momentum since November, mostly because I'm afraid that if I stop, I'll lose it.

Oh, and Libbie and scarletpeaches...you guys rock. ;)